Burnley school's GCSE pass rate increase among best for England (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Burnley school's GCSE pass rate increase among best for England

4:00pm Friday 6th July 2012 in News By Peter Magill , Chief reporter

A HIGH school in Burnley has been praised after recording one of the top increases in its GCSE results in the country.

Unity College has increases its rate of A* to C grades for 2011 by nearly 20 per cent, according to latest figures.

Just under five years ago the Towneley Holmes Road super-school was served with a ‘notice to improve’.

But now a leading educationalist says the school has notched up a ‘stunning achievement’ with its good exam performance.

Sue Williamson, the chief executive of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, said: “Unity College has proved itself to be one of the best schools in the country at improving GCSE outcomes for their students.

These results are a testament to the hard work of the students, teachers and leadership team there and a vindication of their beliefs in high expectations, good teaching and ambition for every young person.”

In December inspectors from the government education watchdog Ofsted also flagged up the school as ‘improving’.

Headteacher Sally Cryer said the school was pleased with the results.

She said: “We are delighted to be nationally recognised for our year on year improvements in our GCSE results and we expect significant further improvements.

“We are very proud to be one of the most-improved schools in the country and this is due to the dedication, and relentless drive to give every child the best possible eduction and for every student to be ‘the very best they can be’.”